PRESS CONFERENCE

Turning Point for the German Military

Clemens von Goetze, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Federal Republic of Germany to Japan
Ingo Gerhartz, Chief of the German Air Force

 

17:30-18:30 Thursday, September 29, 2022
(The speech and Q & A will be in English.)

 

Analysists say that Russia's invasion of the Ukraine constitutes a "Zeitenwende", a turning point, for Germany in Europe, where it has kept a low profile since the end of World War 2. Rising tensions in Asia have also prompted the German government to be a more proactive partner in enforcing the rules-based international order. Last year's visit of the German frigate "Bayern" to Japan and the region was one sign that the ground is shifting. Another is the German Airforce's dispatch of 13 aircraft – the nation's largest peacetime deployment – to join Australia’s biannual multinational exercises. 

Germany's small fleet of several Euro-Fighters, an air-tanker, and other aircraft joined in two international exercises in Australia, testing their interoperability with allies inside and outside NATO throughout the Indo-Pacific region – the so-called "RapidPacific2022" mission. Subsequently, parts of the fleet visited Germany's key partner Japan, whose growing importance Germany's new chancellor Olaf Scholz emphasized this year, when he chose to visit it – not China – on his first official trip to Asia.

On the occasion of this visit, Lt. General Ingo Gerhartz of the German Airforce and Dr. Clemens von Goetze, Ambassador of the Federal Republic of Germany, will explain the changing context of German’s policy guidelines for the Indo-Pacific, and the operational readiness of the German Airforce. 

 

How to attend: 
Please register at front@fccj.or.jp with your name, the name of your media outlet, and FCCJ membership number. Due to space restrictions attendance will be limited. Doors open 15 minutes before the event. Please sign in, giving your name and contact details at the reception, and have your temperature taken before proceeding. 

How to watch online: https://www.youtube.com/c/FCCJchannel/live 
Livestreaming of the press events will be available and video of this event will be uploaded to our FCCJ YouTube channel. 

How to ask questions: https://forms.gle/PEEH8kMTwx4bHa157 
Members watching the event online can submit questions for the speakers in advance using this submission form.

TV crew: Please make a reservation at front@fccj.or.jp. Doors open for TV crews only at 30 minutes before the event. 

 

Professional Activities Committee